ATHY has had a phenomenal week which has seen one good news story after another being rolled out for the town. And the good news looks set to continue.
Last Tuesday the town welcomed the announcement that Kildare Co Council is to purhase the seven-acre Deominican church and property to be used for sheltered and community housing, a library and cultural hub.
Then on Thursday Athy finished in top place in the Barrow Awards and now there are plans for a major regeneration of the town which will be launched next week.
Minister of State Ann Phelan will be in town next Tuesday 10 November for the official launch of the Athy Regeneration Strategy, a blueprint for the future development of the town.
Kildare Co Council, Kildare Leader Partnership, the Athy Enterprise Company Ltd, Athy Chamber and Athy Lions Club have come together to form the Athy Enterprise Network. This network commissioned Shannon International Development Consultants to prepare a social, cultural and environmental regeneration plan for Athy and their findings will form the basis for the plan to bring life back to Athy.
The plan is based on what happened in Westport, which has seen a very successful regeneration according to Helen Dowling of the Athy Enterprise Centre.
“Westport is a town which, in many ways, is very much like Athy and this town has done something similar in the past to what Athy is hoping to achieve now.
Five themes have emerged through the consultation process. They are external investment and industry; tourism heritage and culture; local enterprise and commerce; key sites and infrastructure; and marketing and branding.
Group have been set up locally to concentrate on these areas and to implement the recommendations of the strategy.
“The report highlighted many positives in the town such as its heritage, the River Barrow and the Grand Canal flowing through the town, the new schools, the skateboard park, the proposed parish centre, the proximity of the town to Dublin and the status of the town as a festival town,” said Ms Dowling. “However there were also challenges highlighted and these include the vacancy levels of business premises, the need to promote the town and to look at the image of the town. These will be issues that the five groups are looking at with a view to implementing the recommendations of the strategy.”
Ms Dowling stressed that the strategy is something for everybody in the town to be involved in and there is an open invitation to the public to attend the launch which takes place in the Clanard Court Hotel from 7.30pm next Tuesday night (10 November).
Town planner Simon Wall who was a member of the Westport regeneration project. Will deliver a presentation on their experience to date at the launch. Agencies that support businesses in the town will have stands in the function room and engage with businesses after the official launch.
There could be more good news for Athy in the pipeline. The HSE is in discussions with a number of people in the Athy area with a view to the development of a Primary Care Centre in the town. Its believed that these discussions are in the very preliminary stages with an outcome to those discussions expected to be some months away.
